SUPPLEMENT SUSTAINABILITY IN MANUFACTURING
IMPROVING SUSTAINABILITY IN AUTOMATION
Steve Sands, Festo GB, outlines the simple
steps manufacturers can take to achieve carbon neutrality
bends in tubing or fittings introduce bottlenecks and turbulence in air flows.
Reducing energy consumption is essential across industry T
ypically, 80% of the lifetime costs in pneumatic installations are from energy consumption, with the remaining 20% being
split between maintenance and purchase costs. With that in mind, even a small amount of energy saved through optimisation can have a huge effect on the equipment’s total cost of ownership. If a company is going through growth in
its production output, it can be especially challenging to reduce energy usage. Manufacturers must therefore take measures at all levels, from using sustainable energy sources to recovering heat energy from a variety of processes (like compressed air generation) and recycling it, as well as reducing energy use where possible. Once the compete energy system is set up as
sustainably as possible, manufacturers can turn their attention to reviewing efficiency at machine level. They should ensure new equipment incorporates energy saving products and techniques, and is designed from the outset with energy consumption front-of-mind. It should also include features for monitoring, mapping and optimising the distribution of energy, including continuous and peak requirements. When it comes to legacy machinery, efficiency can often be improved with a few simple measures. We’ve identified four broad areas for consideration: conditioning, air networks, control, and actuation.
CONDITIONING FOR HIGHER EFFICIENCY 1. Monitoring It’s obvious, but if you want to control it, you need to measure and analyse it. Manufacturers need to monitor their air systems and know how much
energy is consumed, and the subsequent cost. Measuring compressed air pressure and flow means they can identify trends and anomalies, then take action when variations to the norm occur.
2. Shutting off air Energy can often be conserved simply by turning off any systems or sub-systems not in use. Shutting off the air in idle conditions contributes to efficiency and can be set up to ensure an equally fast, safe, restart.
5. Tubing and hosing Manufacturers should review and reduce tubing hose lengths, as this reduces ‘dead’ volumes and potentially improves cycle times. When tubing is shortened, make sure purpose designed tube cutters are used giving neat, 90˚ clean cuts, ensuring good, leak-tight fitting connections. Tubing that has an appropriate material for the environment should also be selected. For example, consider the application, and whether the hose will be moving or static. If the hose is dynamic, the material will need to be able to withstand the internal and external friction and repeated cycling without degrading. Warm, moist environments can also rapidly degrade certain materials, leading to leakage and eventually unplanned downtime. Additionally, manufacturers shouldn’t
cut corners when it comes to the fittings. Higher-quality fittings provide better seals and retention/release mechanisms, reducing the leakage and eliminating a further inefficiency source.
Steve Sands
CONSIDER SMART CONTROL 6. Smart control Selecting digital pneumatic products which incorporate smart controls, such
as piezo pressure regulators, deliver precision and can silently and reliably increase machine performance while minimising energy or process gas usage.
3. Reducing pressure Looking closely at the pressure levels across the network and in individual machines, turning them down wherever possible can go a long way towards improving sustainability – higher pressures, of course, require more energy. For example, can machine actuators be operated at a reduced return stroke pressure? Perhaps they only need three bar of pressure to return, instead of six? This leads to savings.
AIR NETWORKS ARE KEY 4. Under pressure The most efficient system will have minimised pressure drops. Sizing the air system and maintaining it correctly ensures there are minimised constrictions to a smooth, non- turbulent air flow. Undersized or oversized tubing diameters are wasteful, while sharp
30 DESIGN SOLUTIONS - SUPPLEMENT JULY/AUGUST 2025 7. Part selection
Online sizing and engineering selection tools make it quicker and easier for manufacturers to identify the best components for their application and refine their design, delivering both CAPEX and OPEX savings. For example, tailoring the size of pneumatic drives to fit requirements can save up to 40% of an application’s air consumption. Up-sizing actuators ‘just in case’ is a very common practice, but if the actuator performance can be quickly and accurately calculated with a simulation tool this isn’t necessary and the wastage can be eliminated. Software tools, such as selection filters within
Festo’s online catalogue, make it incredibly easy for engineers to find the most energy- efficient products that can be retrofitted onto existing machines. These products range from
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